


Fitting In

by squidgie



Series: Squidgie's CommentFic Fills [7]
Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Inspired by Fanfiction, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-29
Updated: 2020-09-29
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:28:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26719801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/squidgie/pseuds/squidgie
Summary: The thing about bringing 1961's Will to Derek's 2021 New York was that all in all, he seemed to fit in better than Derek figured he might.
Relationships: Derek "Nursey" Nurse/William "Dex" Poindexter
Series: Squidgie's CommentFic Fills [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1935178
Comments: 4
Kudos: 54
Collections: Bite Sized Bits of Fic, Bite Sized Bits of Fic from 2020





	Fitting In

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [love finds you](https://archiveofourown.org/works/22089940) by [hockeysometimes](https://archiveofourown.org/users/hockeysometimes/pseuds/hockeysometimes), [poindextears](https://archiveofourown.org/users/poindextears/pseuds/poindextears). 



> This was inspired by a wonderful prompt in comment_fic: [Check, Please!, Any/Any, "Hold The Line" (Toto)](https://comment-fic.livejournal.com/1138034.html?thread=115946098#t115946098). Second, when I saw the prompt of "Hold the line," my mind immediately went to the incredible piece "[love finds you](https://archiveofourown.org/works/22089940)" because it's perfectly something Will Poindexter, living in the little town of Good Haven in 1961 and transported to New York City with Derek in 2021, would say. There are just some things that never leave your vocabulary, and "Hold the line" would be one of them (whereas his parents probably said "Hold the wire").
> 
> Long story short, this is a companion piece to that, so you should read that first - but yeah, it's 221,000+ words. For those of you that haven't read it, Nursey from 2021 goes on vacation and gets lost - somehow crossing through time to end up in Good Haven, Maine in the year 1961 where he meets Will Poindexter. And once they fall in love, and all the stars align for them, Derek is able to bring Will back to 2021. This fic takes place a month or so after they get back to 2021's New York City.

The thing about bringing 1961's Will to Derek's 2021 New York was that all in all, he seemed to fit in better than Derek figured he might. Sure, he tended to wear button-down shirts with suspenders and had a penchant for watching black & white movies over modern ones. And sometimes when they had to drive somewhere, Will would decide to make a day of it. He'd pack up a lunch and lead Derek to the garage, only complaining about New York traffic a little bit. And when Derek would glance over, seeing a smiling Will behind the wheel of his father's 1945 Ford truck with a newsboy style cap covering a mess of red hair, it took Derek's breath away.

There's no way he wouldn't be at Will's side. Not even the years could separate them.

Settling him in _did_ have a bump or two, such as the compromise that Will made when he agreed to get a cellphone, and that was that Derek had to get a landline for their home. The suggestion had come out of nowhere as a warm Summer thunderstorm pelted the windows with rain and lit up the skies like daylight. "I mean, what happens when the power goes out? These batteries," he said as he tapped Derek's phone with a freckled finger, "won't last for forever, Der. One time I lost power on the farm once for almost a week."

Derek opened his mouth to say it was preposterous, that _this was New York_ when the lights flickered once, twice, and then the power went out. So as they climbed into bed that night, he agreed between one kiss and the next.

Forced to choose, Derek would say that his favorite thing about Will was that he brought his 1960s style manners with him. "Just common decency," he'd say when he held the door for another couple when they went out to eat or picked up the trash that a little one had dropped, leaving Derek to roll his eyes fondly. Of course, the opposite was true; if someone tossed trash out willingly, Will wouldn't show his anger. But he _would_ go red in the face, pick it up, and hand it back to them. 

After a hearty dinner out at a nearby diner that reminded both of them of Annie's, Derek went to his writing desk (now separated from the small living room by a handmade wooden screen that Will had built for him soon after moving in) and Will settled in front of the radio with a book. He was deep in another notebook of poems when the shrill bell of the telephone interrupted his train of thought, followed quickly by Will's heavy footfalls and muted voice.

He'd mostly gotten back into the stanza that flowed effortlessly from his hands to the page when he heard, "Hold the line, please," and covered up the receiver. "Der?" he called. "Derek?"

"Babe?" Derek said as he put his pen down and walked into the living room. "What's up?"

"Where's a gentleman on the line that would like to know if we need to review our home insurance policy."

Sometimes it took Derek a few seconds to remember that Will is from a completely different time when vacuum and housewares salesmen walked door to door, and anyone called a 'snake oil salesman' would literally be run out of town before sunset. "Will," he said as he shook his head, " _hang up_! It's a scam."

"Now, Der," Will replied with a fond shake of his head, then pulled the receiver back to his ear, "Not everyone-" After a second, he replied, "Oh." He looked up at Derek again. "The line went dead."

Derek closed the difference between them, happy with Will's naiveté while hoping he never loses it, because while a jaded Will might fit in with New Yorkers better, Derek would miss that innocence. He smiled, then took the receiver from Will and hung up the phone. "How 'bout we have a little dessert?" he asked as he grabbed Will's hand.

The little crease between Will's eyebrows showed up. "But Der, we already had that big piece of pie at the diner. And..." He looked around as Derek continued to tug him to the stairs. "The door's that way," he said as he pointed a finger.

Derek's smile grew as he pulled Will close and stared into amber eyes that he swore he would get lost in one day if he gazed too long. "But the bedroom's _this way_ ," he said, then kissed Will's nose and pulled him toward the no-calorie dessert option.


End file.
